Water Use: Reduce Repair, Retrofit!
How to Conduct a Waste Audit
How to Garden with Natural Pesticides, Fertilizers and Weed Control
How to Speak Up Against Bigotry
How to Purify Indoor Air with Household Plants

Water Use: Reduce Repair, Retrofit!

1. When brushing your teeth, use a glass of water instead of running the tap.

2. Install a water-efficient showerhead, faucet aerators, or low-flow faucets, and fix dripping taps (it can save about 2,000 litres of water a month per tap.)

3. Turn the hot tap down, rather than the cold tap up, if you require cooler water.

4. Keep a jug of cold water in the fridge so that you don’t have to wait for the tap to run cold.

5. If you own your home, insulate your water pipes to reduce the amount of water wasted while waiting for it to heat up.

6. Take short showers instead of baths, and turn off the water while soaping up or shampooing.

7. Regularly check for and repair toilet leaks,and install a displacement device, such as a plastic bottle or toilet tank bag or "bank," inside the toilet tank. These devices can save up to 20 percent of the water your toilet uses. (Note: Do NOT use a brick — it can crumble and damage the fixture.)

8. Flush less frequently. Many people adopt variations of the adage, "if it’s yellow let it mellow and if it’s brown flush it down".

9. Soak pots and pans before washing and rinse your dishes in a plugged sink, rather than under running water.

10. Cook vegetables using water-efficient methods: microwaving, steaming or using a pressure cooker. You can also cut down on water loss by using tight lids on pots, and simmering instead of boiling rapidly.

11. Wait until you have a full load in your dishwasher or washing machine before using it, and/or use lower water-level settings when possible.

12. If you’re buying a new dishwasher or washing machine, look for one with at least a “AAA” rating for water efficiency.

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How to Conduct a Waste Audit

Conducting a large scale waste audit requires the participation of the institution for permission to collect and sort waste, to efficiently transport the waste by truck from the production point to the sorting station, and to ensure a safe workplace. Maintenance personnel can greatly help by providing the necessary equipment and the occasional “coup de pouce”.

Certain considerations are necessary when planning a waste audit. Conducting the audit in the winter may be cold, especially if the garbage is stored outside in sub-zero temperatures, or if there isn’t an indoor treatment location available. On the other hand, summer audits may reveal more unpleasant smells. Also the timing of the audit should represent the yearly waste production. Maintenance personnel and the waste collection contractor need to be notified to avoid garbage collection and loss of precious samples. Signs on the garbage container need to be placed to remind employees or to pass the message to someone who does not know of the auditing activities. The space selected for the audit must be suitable: large enough for movement around the sorting tables and to store the bags before and after sorting, with good ventilation (such as a garage door), heated, with a concrete floor (avoid wood floors which will retain odours), a space far from employees’ noses, and close to the garbage compactor.

Suggested materials for the Waste Audit:

• Excel/Word tables with various categories and space to add weights and total weights.

• A pencil as it doesn’t wash off even when paper is wet!

• A pen and cardboard to make signs indicating not to remove the waste from the working area, especially if the audit lasts more than one day.

• A scale to weigh categories: The scale should be easy to clean and have a digital screen attached with an extensible wire to place on the table for writing while the scale is on the floor. The scale should be able to weigh up to 100 kg. The measurement units must be consistent throughout the study (kg or lb). It must be remembered to weigh the collection containers, keeping an empty container for that purpose is useful.

• Identical buckets for sorting the waste, properly labelled with permanent tags. Buckets can be found at the cafeteria (muffin mixes often come in such buckets). Large garbage cans are needed for residual waste. Also large containers for recyclables after weighing are also important, so you don’t place the waste back with the garbage. Having a garbage dumpster or compactor at proximity is useful.

• Table(s) to sort the waste in a comfortable position.

• Garbage bags (a few clean ones to line the table and floor if necessary, and reused bags from the waste stream for residuals).

• Safety equipment: Gloves, full-body suits, shoe covers, masks and protective goggles. These are essential for the Environmental Health and Safety Office to endorse the project. A first aid kit is also recommended.

• Clean-up equipment: Paper-towels to wipe off hands and face during the audit; shovels and brooms to clean the floor (a pressure hose with soapy water is quite useful or at least a mop with a buckets); soap and warm water to wash the buckets after each work day; disinfectant to wash the tables and equipment.

• Cart: to transport your material.

• Radio: music makes the tasks easier!

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How to Garden with Natural Pesticides, Fertilizers and Weed Control

Even native plants can be vulnerable to insects and weeds. There is an array of options to ensure a healthy undisturbed garden.

Weeds

• To initially de-weed your garden in the spring, place black plastic over the entire plot for 2-4 weeks. This increases the soil temperature and blocks sunlight from the soil, killing all of the unwanted plants in your garden plot. If you don’t mind the aesthetic of black plastic around your vegetables, cut holes in the plastic and plant your seedlings in the holes to ensure a weed free garden all summer. Alternately, newspaper can be used in the same manner as the black plastic.

• What is called “live mulch” can also be used if you don’t want synthetic materials in your garden. A live mulch is a plant that grows fast and close to the ground thus taking up all the extra space in your garden so it cannot be colonized by unwanted plants .

Pesticides

• Strong oils like peppermint and tea tree can be lightly sprayed or dabbed around your plants.

• Sprinkle cayenne pepper around and on your plants.

• To make your own fungicide, mix 4 teaspoons (about 1 rounded tablespoon) of baking soda and 1 tablespoon of horticultural oil into one gallon of water. Spray lightly on foliage of plants afflicted with black spot, powdery mildew, brown patch and other fungal diseases. Avoid over-using or pouring on the soil. Potassium bicarbonate is a good substitute for baking soda. Citrus oil and molasses can be used instead of horticultural oil.

Fertilizers

• If you have access to a farm, livestock manure (chickens, goats, cows, etc.) is a great fertilizer.

• Composting your organic waste is a great way to make your own fertilizer and reduce the amount of waste going into landfills. If you live in the city and composting in the back yard is not an option, try worm composting.

• If your soil is too alkaline, adding coffee grinds or tea to your garden will help restore the pH of the soil.

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How to Speak Up Against Bigotry

The next time you hear an oppressive comment or a bad joke speak up about it. The organization Teaching Tolerance offers six steps to speaking out:

1. BE READY. Think of yourself as someone who will speak up. Have something in mind to say next time an incident occurs. It could be a simple as “Why would you say that?”

2. IDENTIFY THE BEHAVIOUR. Sometimes pointing out the behaviour helps someone hear what they are really saying: “Barbara, what I hear you saying is that all Natives are lazy.” Avoid name-calling or using loaded terms. If you begin by calling someone a racist, a wall goes up and it become difficult to communicate.

3. APPEAL TO PRINCIPLES. If the speaker is someone you know – call on their higher principles: “Sue, I am surprised to hear you say that. I have always thought of you as a fair-minded person.”

4. SET LIMITS. While you cannot control another person you can set limits: “Please don’t use that language when I am around.” Even if the speaker’s attitude doesn’t change you can limit its contagion.

5. FIND AN ALLY/BE AN ALLY. If you aren’t the first voice to speak up against everyday bigotry, be the second. Find like-minded people to support you.

6. BE INFORMED. Listen to the words and phrases that you use and know what they mean.

7. BE VIGILANT. Stay prepared, and keep speaking up. Change happens slowly.

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How to Purify Indoor Air with Household Plants

The National Aeronautics Space Administration recently conducted a 2-year study examining air quality life support systems for a lunar habitat. Recognizing that on earth, air is produced and sustained through the living processes of plants, they discovered that common houseplants balance humidity levels and are excellent filters for poisonous chemicals.

Furniture, carpets, and building materials release chemicals that are then trapped indoors through ventilation systems. Because it is common for North Americans to spend 90% of their lives indoors with chemicals such as ammonia, formaldehyde, and benzene – allergies, asthma, chemical hypersensitivity, and cancer are increasing (Wolverton, B.C. 1996:7).

It has been suggested that to clean the air one plant per 10 square yards is optimal (Berman, Alan 2001). The top ten most efficient plants for creating indoor air quality are: Areca palm, Reed palm, Dwarf date palm, Boston fern, Janet Craig dracaena, English ivy, Australian sword fern, Peace Lily, Rubber plant, Weeping fig (Berman, Alan).

Source: Wolverton, 1996 & Berman, 2001